“All the king's servants and the people of the king's provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter so that he may live. But as for me, I have not been called to come in to the king these thirty days.” Esther 4:11 ESV
… that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law—to be put to death…
Any man or woman? This was not any man or woman who was seeking an audience with the king. Esther was the queen, his wife, who was seeking an opportunity to speak to the king. How did Esther become downgraded to being any woman who would be put to death for simply approaching her husband? How had she not seen her husband for 30 days despite living in the same palace? Esther had gone from the status of orphan to queen to now being treated as any other woman in the land.
Others do not determine our worth
The experience of being relegated to a lower place on the totem pole is one that will probably come our way at least once in life. However it is not to be a barometer of our worth. We can mistakenly allow others to dictate who we are and determine whether we have purpose or not. It seems that Esther fell into this trap after not being called by her husband for 30 days. Esther initially did not see what role she could play to help the Jews when she was approached by Mordecai.
Esther 4:11 lays out the reason why she considered herself to be in no position to assist. In her mind, she did not see the value of her position of queen after not being called by the king for 30 days; a sign perhaps that she was not needed nor wanted by him. What good would she bring to this situation if the king did not want to see her and an unsolicited rejected approach was punishable by death? Esther had let the king’s treatment of her impact how she saw her worth and purpose. She was using the king’s lack of desire for her as an indication that there was not much to her or for her to do.
The truth of who we are
However the truth of our worth, who we are and the purpose of our existence can only be clearly seen through the eyes of God. He is the One who fearfully and wonderfully made us and preordained every moment of our lives before they even came to be (Psalm 139:14, 16). Fortunately Esther had a change in mindset with the following words from Mordecai:
“Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”
(Esther 4:14 NLT)
Esther shifted from viewing herself as a demoted insignificant wife of the king to seeing herself as a valuable, well positioned servant of God, ready to take on the task of helping her fellow Jews. She allowed God’s will to unfold as she realized that her unique placement in the palace was not about being King Xerxes’ queen but being God’s co-worker in the deliverance of his people.
How do you determine your worth?
Is it possible that you are facing a similar situation like Esther? Are you allowing how others treat you to determine your worth? Are misconceptions about yourself stifling you as God’s workmanship who is unable to participate in the preordained good works God has for you to do? Are you allowing external factors such as your job title, academic background, socioeconomic status, your location, your past choices, etc., to limit you? Have you lost sight of the truth that you are fearfully and wonderfully made by God who loves you and values you as a co-laborer on the mission field?
Esther figured it out with some help from Mordecai. The king’s lack of interest in her no longer determined her worth. How others treated her did not dictate who she was nor define her sense of purpose. Awareness of her true worth, identity and purpose led her to save many from death. Awareness of our true worth, identity and purpose can do the same for many today. How we see ourselves and what we believe about our worth impacts how we will allow God to use us in His kingdom work here on earth. It’s time to put aside others’ perceptions and limitations of who we are and embrace who God says we are: his masterpieces in Christ poised to do good works that he uniquely planned for us to do long ago (Ephesians 2:10 NLT).
Considerations 